WELCOME
Times of Mass and DevotionsHA = Holy Angels Church, Ash GU12 6LU HF = Holy Family Church, Farnham GU9 0LH |
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| Sat 29 Nov | 5.30pm | HA | First Mass – Fr. John Nuttall | Frank Leahy (RIP) |
| Sun 30 Nov | 9.15am | HF | First Sunday of Advent | Terry Framp (RIP) |
| 11.00am | HA | |||
| Mon 1 Dec | NO MASS | |||
| Tue 2 Dec | 9.30am | HF | NO MASS | |
| Wed 3 Dec | 9.30am | HA | Liturgy of the Word | |
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| Thu 4 Dec | 6.15pm | HF | Adoration | |
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7.30pm |
HF | Liturgy of the Word | ||
| Fri 5 Dec | NO MASS | |||
| Sat 6 Dec | 5.30pm | HA | First Mass – Fr. John Nuttall | Mrs. Moug, Arthur Higgins & Abdullah Alliyar (RIP) |
| Sun 7 Dec | 9.15am | HF | Second Sunday of Advent | Special Intentions of the people of the Parish |
| 11.00am | HA | Gloria Holland (RIP) | ||
Second Collection
There will be a Second Collection TODAY for Christmas Flowers.
Collections for 23rd November, 2014
Holy Angels Offertory: £265.55
Holy Family Offertory: £207.65
Information
Chris Mann on the Breaking News:
I’m sure that you are as pleased as I am at the good news that even if we do have to wait a few more months our prayers have been answered and we are to have a new priest. At one point I thought that there might not be a spare priest available to serve our two parishes and that we end up being split and become part of another parish. That would have been a great shame as in recent years the two parishes have worked so closely together on Baptism, First Communion and Confirmation classes, Liturgy; as well as our Youth Group and various social activities. Having been at the Youth Mass last Sunday we are fortunate in having a great group of young people from both parishes who seem to work so well together, with great joy and give such hope for the future of the church in this area. Having a young family and therefore less likely to be moved on elsewhere our new priest will bring stability to our two parishes and a chance to build and develop for the future.
First Holy Communion
Saturday 6th December – First Holy Communion Class, 9am at Holy Family
Sunday 7th December – First Holy Communion Children’s Mass, 9.15am, Holy Family
Prayer Requests for the sick
Deacon David Morgan, Newton Abrew, Michael Brandon, Patrick Quinn, Maureen Cosgrove and Sean Flynn.
We pray for all those in our two Parishes who are sick and need our prayers at this time.
Churches Together Christmas Day
On your own on Christmas Day?
Churches Together in Farnham invite you to join them for Christmas Day Lunch. (NO CHARGE) You are warmly welcomed to a traditional Christmas Lunch with all the trimmings at 1 o’clock on Christmas Day at Brightwells Gostrey Centre, East Street, Farnham.
(To book a place, please ring Mariola Boyd 01252 716 785 or Michael McDonnell 01252 712 600 Before Friday, 12th December. Transport provided if required.)
Volunteers to help with Christmas Day Lunch for people who would otherwise spend the day on their own. The event takes place as above on Christmas Day. (For more information, [please see the Poster at the back of the Church)
Holy Family
Christmas Art Work: We will be making a large piece of artwork to go on the lawn over the Christmas period. You are invited to come and offer your ideas and begin preparations on Sunday 7th December at 2:00 pm in the hall. ALL AGES WELCOME. The work will continue on Saturday and Sunday 13/14 December to be ready for 20th December. More info from Deacon John.
Farnham Foodbank are looking for volunteers to collect food items at Waitrose Farnham on Saturday 6 December 2014 for 2 hour slots starting 9am and finishing 5pm
Please respond to Rose Williamson at Farnham Foodbank 01252 737586 or 07901581539 or email rose@farnham.foodbank.org.uk
Holy Angels
Children’s Liturgy Update: Please note that during Advent Children’s Liturgy will take place as follows:
Today and on the 3rd Sunday of Advent – 14th December
Since September, you will note that CL at Holy Angels has been held only on 1st and 3rd Sundays of the month. This format is set to continue for the foreseeable future, due to our small team. We are still in need of catechists who would be happy to lead a session. If you can help us, please contact Bec Newey on 07854 231469 or johnandbec@ntlworld.com
Local Normandy Bus Services Information:
Please refer to the information on the Church Notice Board in the Church lobby.
Prayer Group: takes place once a month on a Tuesday at Holy Angels Church in the Parish Office: 7.30pm for 7.45pm start. Next dates are: 2nd Dec, 2014, 13th Jan, 2015 and 10th Feb, 2015.
First Sunday of Advent
Today’s Gospel addresses a wake-up call to us:
Each day summons us to awake from sleep. Sometimes we can’t wait for the morning to come. We wake up in joyful anticipation. We feel good to be alive. We are thankful to God for the gift of a new day. It is a chance to carry on some task we have started, or to begin something we have been postponing, or to repair some damage or neglect in our lives.
Other times we are apathetic about waking up. We greet the new day without enthusiasm. Life may be monotonous or empty for us. Perhaps we are unemployed or retired, and there is nothing to look forward to. And most of us know or have known days, hopefully not too many, when we dread the approach of morning. We wake up fearfully, and get up reluctantly. Life is dark and burdensome for us. Perhaps we are old or sickly or alone.
How we greet each morning is very important. If we greet the day with joy and thankfulness, we will bring energy and enthusiasm to its tasks. But if we greet it with apathy or dread, we will face its tasks in a half-hearted manner, which means we are going into the day with a very severe handicap.
No one has a perfect life. All of us have to face difficulties. It is what we make of these difficulties that matters. Difficulties can be challenges. If we don’t like something we should try to change it. If we can’t change it, then we should try to change the way we think about it. Complaining won’t do us any good. Circumstances are beyond our control but our conduct is in our own power. What makes the difference is how we respond to our particular situation.
Advent issues a spiritual wake-up call to us, and has an awakening power. Unless we are spiritually awake we are only half living. In this respect some people are little better than sleepwalkers. They have eyes but do not see, and ears but do not hear. Their minds are narrow and closed. Their hearts have become hardened. To be awake spiritually means to be open and receptive, vigilant and active.
Spirituality is about waking up. It is about understanding things, seeing things, hearing things. It is necessary to reflect, to have the will, and to be wide awake. Not to while away the time in drowsiness. To be spiritually awake means to be attentive to God and to others. It means to be living in love.
We have two options: we can be a watcher or a sleeper. It is easy to be a sleeper. But sleepers waste their lives. It is harder but very much more rewarding to be a watcher. To watch means to be awake, to be alert, to be concerning, to be active, to be interested, to care. In a word, to be a watcher is to be responsible.
Jesus urges us to stay awake, to be on our guard, to be on the watch. We have nothing to fear and everything to gain from answering Advent’s wake-up call.
This is the first Sunday of a new liturgical year. Another year has come and gone. Time is passing. Life is short, so we need to get on with our work. We must seize the day. We shall pass through this world but once. Therefore, any good that we can do, to any human being, let us do it now; let us not defer it or neglect it; for we shall not pass this way again.
(Taken from New Sunday & Holy Day Liturgies by Flor McCarthy, SDB)